Our man at the Vatican: Bundy kid with ‘Sunday shoes' who made his way to Holy See
Rome: Keith Pitt stood quietly among the faithful at St Peter's Square on Easter Sunday, watching history unfold. Just metres from where Pope Francis gave what would become his final public blessing, Australia's ambassador-designate to the Holy See was bearing witness to a profoundly sacred moment – one he would soon realise marked the end of an era.
'I was absolutely blessed to be there,' Pitt tells this masthead, reflecting on that extraordinary day. 'Even in his final hours, he was down amongst the people. That just indicates what sort of person he was.'
Only four weeks into his new post, Pitt has found himself at the centre of a global moment of mourning and transition. The death of Francis, a figure whose papacy reshaped the modern Catholic Church, has plunged the Vatican into a mourning period and will bring world leaders – from Donald Trump to Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelensky (and Australia's Governor-General Sam Mostyn) – to Rome for a historic funeral.
'It's very sad,' Pitt, 55, said, speaking from the Australian embassy a stone's throw from the Vatican. 'But there's always the opportunity for renewal.'
Though he has not formally presented his diplomatic credentials – an honour usually extended in person by the pope – Pitt is already fulfilling his duties. 'We've provided a copy of credentials, which gives us some leeway to begin activity,' he says. 'The formal presentation hasn't occurred due to His Holiness's health, but I'll be attending the funeral on Saturday as part of Australia's official delegation.'
That delegation, which includes bipartisan political representation of former deputy prime minister and Nationals MP Michael McCormack and Trade Minister Don Farrell, speaks to the global and cross-party regard for Pope Francis's legacy.
Pitt, a former federal minister and long-time MP for Hinkler, grew up a world away from the grandeur of Vatican City, in Bundaberg, Queensland. Yet his roots in the Catholic Church run deep.
'We were the kids without shoes during the week who'd put them on just for church,' he said, recalling his childhood Sundays at St Mary's, a humble timber church in the heart of Bundaberg. 'St Mary's was where we did all the sacraments. It was the centre of our faith community – until it burned down. '
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